The use of surgical staplers in place of sutures is now commonplace. There are a variety of different types of staplers which are employed for various types of operations. For laparoscopic procedures, uniquely designed apparatus are required.
In a laparoscopic procedure, the instruments must fit through a cylindrical cannula into the body cavity. They must be elongated and generally conform to the shape of the cannula and therefore must be generally cylindrical. Such surgical staplers exist.
Due to the nature of laparoscopic procedures, it is undesirable to repeatedly insert and remove instruments from the cannula. The surgeon cannot directly view the organ or area of operation. Therefore, the surgeon must locate and relocate vessels and other body parts which are the subject of operative procedures. When a cystic duct, for example, is sutured and cut, the cystic duct must be separated or dissected from surrounding tissue. The dissecting apparatus or probe must then be removed and the stapler inserted. The duct is then stapled at two locations. Then the stapler must be removed and a cutting device inserted to cut between the two staples. This is particularly time consuming, requiring that the probe be removed, the stapler be removed and the cutter be inserted and each time the bile duct be relocated.
Other operative procedures require gross dissection of tissue such as the mesentery from surrounding nerves and vessels prior to cutting and/or stapling. This frequently requires different probes and a hydro dissection tube. This is basically a suction/irrigation tube which is attached to a source of water under pressure. Again, this procedure requires repeated insertion and removal of various instruments.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a laparoscopic device which will dissect, staple and/or cut.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a stapling device that can be readily used for dissection.
It is further an object of the present invention to provide a laparoscopic stapler which will permit the stapler to independently grasp body parts irrespective of the stapling operation.
Further, it is an object of the present invention to provide for a surgical stapler which will grasp a body part and permit the cutter to be selectively operated to cut the body part when grasped by the stapler. This provides an apparatus which can grasp a body part, staple it, and hold it while it is being cut. Further, the present invention permits this to occur in any sequence.
It is also the object of this invention to enable suctioning and irrigating through a separate channel which can also be used in hydro dissection.
The objects and advantages of the present invention will be further appreciated in light of the following detailed description and drawings in which: